One Last Day
by emeralddusk
Summary: Imprisoned...Tortured...This is what happened when the government found out we were wizards.
1. Chapter 1

Wizards:

One Last Day

What does it mean to die? To be hated? My name is Alex Russo, and at the age of 17, I was imprisoned with my family for being wizards.

The government, in one of their ruthless attempts to control the people of the world, set out to capture all wizards. I don't know how they found out, who told them, or why. They were vicious, fueled by their own unprovoked hatred. Our sub shop was stormed in broad daylight: our tables were knocked over, our apartment was invaded and ransacked, The Layer was broken into, our books burnt before our eyes, our wands snapped in half and their emeralds taken for tests, and our portal was transformed into a bridge for the government into the Wizard World.

I screamed as the grown men and women hollered, knocked my parents and brothers onto the floor, handcuffed our hands behind our backs, and walked us out into the black vehicle out front. While we were paraded into the car leading to our prison, classmates and friends yelled at us, spit at us, and threw garbage at our faces. Dean was there, screaming "Wizard!" at me, and destroying any relationship we'd ever had.

After driving for three hours, we were pushed into an underground dungeon in an area I'd never been to before. Once we were on the bottom floor, which had a grimy stone floor crawling with rats and other insects, we were shoved into a dark, filthy prison cell. Professor Crumbs and Chancellor Tootietootie were waiting for us with chains holding their arms to the wall. The entire dungeon smelled of death and decay.

"Are you wizards?" asked a male government agent, his voice laced with a snarling hatred for everything we were.

None of us answered. We would never sell out to those animals.

"Answer me!" the man screamed, his face turning red as we "animals" refused to comply. "Are you wizards?"

We stared the man down, refusing to break.

"That's it," the man snarled under his breath as he grabbed me by the shoulder and hauled me into another room.

"Don't tell them anything, Alex!" my father called. "It'll all be okay!"

My shoulder was growing raw as the cruel man's tight grip refused to let up. Once we reached his designated room, he pushed the door open, and threw me hard on the floor like a pile of garbage.

"I'm gonna give you one last chance," the government agent said. "Are you a wizard?...You won't have to suffer if you just tell me the truth. Let me know the secrets of the Wizard World, and everything will be okay."

"No it won't," I replied, my voice remaining strong even though my sorrow and fear caused my throat to quiver. However, I wasn't going to act like a scared little girl. "You just want to keep us as slaves. Because we don't fit your ideas."

"That's a lie," the man responded, his voice growing soft and friendly. "I want to help the wizards...To learn from them...I know being a wizard is tough on you. Having to keep secrets from your friends...knowing you'll never have a normal life. But that can all end if you just tell me."

"...No," I replied. No one who wanted to help me would put me through all of this.

"...Suit yourself," the man said, shutting the door as he left me alone.

The sight that greeted me made my heart skip a beat: the room was filled with corpses. They were rotting and decomposing with looks of terror and pain scarred on their faces. The smell of dead flesh burned my nose, and bones covered most of the floor. I vomited. The sight was too much for me. Maybe these were other wizards who got caught...Maybe I'd be joining them in a couple of days...or hours. Finally, I crawled into a corner of the room where the floor was almost clear, and cried for hours.

"What did you do to her?" my father yelled at the agent, his voice exploding with rage.

"What I had to," the man answered, a hint of pleasure in his voice. "Anyone of you want to tell me what I want to hear?"

No one answered.

"What do you hope to gain from this?" Crumbs asked, his voice hoarse and tired.

"A better world," the agent angrily answered. "It's lights out time." The man walked away, and shut off the lights, drowning everyone in shadows.

The night dragged on for what felt like an eternity. Every breath I took burned my nose until it bled onto the cold stone floor. My family needed me: I couldn't break. The torches lit the room up a devastating red color. Why was this happening to us? What did we do to hurt anyone? I've never been perfect, but I've never put anyone through something like this. Soon, my eyes grew tired, and I fell asleep in the filthy ground.


	2. Chapter 2

Wizards:

One Last Day

Chapter 2

When I was 7, I discovered I was a wizard. My father used to tell me stories about great wizard heroes, and fantastic spells I knew I'd never be able to perform. One in particular astounded me: A spell so great, only two wizards in history had ever been able to use it. Its price was great, but its power was unimaginable; one wish. No rules, no restrictions. Nothing could undo or destroy that wish. I had the words committed to heart, but I never dared to say them.

"Wake up, trash!" a man yelled at me, breaking my dream, and exposing me to the nightmarish reality that I was trapped in. "Let's go." The man grabbed my shoulder, and threw me into the hallway. Too weak from lack of sleep or food, I went where he pushed me, not trying to escape or run away.

Finally, we reached the cell my friends and family had been locked in, and I was pushed onto the floor. My mother ran up and hugged me. "Oh, my baby," she said. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, Mom," I answered. "I'm okay."

"Time for interrogations," declared a woman agent with a cold face. The woman opened the cell door, grabbed Max, and lead him down into another wing of the prison.

"Maxie!" my mother screamed. "Don't you dare hurt him!"

"Shut up!" a male agent yelled, pushing my mom onto the ground.

"Leave her alone!" I yelled. I then recited a spell that blasted the man into the wall.

Another man ran up to me, and clenched my hands, squeezing my fingers until they felt like they were about to break. "You use magic again," he snarled. "And the fingers come off."

The man's threats didn't matter, and he knew it: something in this dungeon was making us all weak. That was probably the last spell I'd ever use.

"Alex," Justin said. "Did you tell them anything about us?"

"No," I answered. "Professor Crumbs, do you know how to get us out of here?"

"I'm sorry, Alex," replied the elderly wizard, sorrowfully. "There is no spell we can cast to save us from this place...I have failed."

"Don't say that, Crumbs," my father snapped. "None of us saw this coming. I don't even know who let our secret out."

"...I did it," Justin confessed.

The room fell silent. We were all shocked.

"How could you?" Tootietootie asked.

"I did it to save Max," Justin replied. "He ran out in front of a car...and I pushed him away with a spell...I'm sorry."

"...I cannot blame you, Justin," Crumbs finally said.

"It doesn't make it right," Justin replied, clearly angry at himself.

"You didn't have a choice," I assured my brother. "I would've done the same thing."

For awhile, we sat in silence, waiting for Max to return. It was all so horrible. We were so hot and exhausted. After an hour, an agent brought my little brother back: he was pretty shaken up, and the look in his eye gave everything away; he gave in.

"I'm sorry," he said.

We all felt ourselves grow weaker. Everything was lost.

"Took us a while," said a male agent, his voice cocky. "But we broke him. In one day, the Wizard World'll be a public attraction."

"You can't do this!" my father yelled. "Wizards are still people!"

"Not my problem," the man replied. "Enjoy this down time while you can." The agent turned away, and left the room.

There was no choice left: I couldn't let this happen. I closed my eyes, and focused my magic.

A small blue orb of energy appeared above the palm of my hands. I felt my magic flow away.

"Alex, what are you doing?" Justin asked me, shocked.

I recited those words I've known for so long. Suddenly, red and white streams of pure magic flowed around me: I wasn't in the prison anymore, but a new place. It was all going to be okay.

"I wish..." I began, my voice echoing gracefully. This was it: this was for everything. "For a happy ending." My magic exploded out of my reach, and with the power of the spell, changed the world around us.

We found ourselves back at the sub station.

"Alex," Max called. "You did it! You saved us!"

"How did you do that?" my mother asked.

I held my hands out, and a small mist of magic blew away from me. I smiled at my family, knowing it all had to be done.

"You gave up your magic," Justin exclaimed. "...To save us."

"That's what family is for," I replied, tears forming in my eyes, and my voice beginning to quiver.

My mom, dad, and brothers hugged me, and Crumbs and Tootietootie smiled with approval. There was a new life to go back to, and we were going to face it together.


End file.
